On September 4th Governor Whitmer threatened that she was going to ban flavored nicotine vaping products to protect our youth.  Although everyone around the country believed Michigan was the first state to enact such ban they were all wrong.  On that date Governor Whitmer just announced her intentions but made no move to actually do so.

Well she finally lit that match and filed the necessary papers to enact that ban.  The papers created the emergency rules banning flavored nicotine vaping products were released today. The flavored nicotine vaping ban was developed in response to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) finding of a public health emergency.

Retailers, resellers, including online sellers have 14 days to comply, which means sell all their product or take a loss on what they have left.  That 14 day period to comply is 16 days shorter than Governor Whitmer promised on September 4th, many are now wondering how anyone can trust Governor Whitmer any longer.

Bob Wheaton, a spokesman for the state Department of Health and Human Services stated:

"We determined that 14 days would be an adequate time period for when to begin enforcement”

Well isn’t that nice of them, the Governor made that decision without consulting anyone with knowledge on that subject.

In today’s press release Governor Whitmer stated:

I’m proud that Michigan has been a national leader in protecting our kids from the harmful effects of vaping...For too long, companies have gotten our kids hooked on nicotine by marketing candy-flavored vaping products as safe. That ends today. This bold action will protect our kids and our overall public health.

The MDHHS Bureau of Health and Wellness filed the Protection of Youth from Nicotine Product Addiction Emergency Rules with the Secretary of State.

Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, chief medical executive and chief deputy director for health at MDHHS stated:

Today’s filing is necessary to protect the public health...Youth vaping is a public health emergency and has been declared an epidemic by the U.S. surgeon general. Nicotine in e-cigarettes is harmful to developing brains and has dangerous long-term health consequences such as heart disease and cancer

The rules are effective for 180 days and can be extended for another six months

You may not remember or knew but back on June 4th Governor Whitmer signed Senate Bills 106 and 155, which prohibited the sale of e-cigarettes and other non-traditional nicotine products to minors.  The fact that she is now banning the flavored vape products less than 4 months after signing those laws appear to prove that laws restricting sales of any products do not work.

As I stated in a piece I published on September 5th:

It is interesting that the Governor is using the emergency rule avenue since it is not subject to legislative revenue, again if President Trump pulled this trick he would be called a dictator.  The emergency rules could last up to one year.  After the year has expired the Governor would either have to work with the Legislature to enact permanent regulations or attempt to codify the flavor ban through the traditional rule-making process, which would then be subject to legislative review.

I understand everyone’s concern about younger people starting down the path of a very bad habit of inhaling nicotine but because of that do we want to allow politicians to ban the sale of a legal product instead of just outlawing that product outright?  The Governor already signed a bill back in June of this year outlawing the sale of “vapor product” or “alternative nicotine product” to anyone under the age of 18 years old and creates penalties for doing so, why is that not enough.

 

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